Different Types of Laboratory Glassware

There are several types of laboratory glassware available and each one has its unique functionality. Some of the glasswares are used to hold and save chemicals while other glasswares are designed for volumetric measuring, processing or preparing solutions, and a plethora of other purposes. The most ordinarily used glass in labs are borosilicate glass and quartz glass that can endure the stress of heating. Although there are some chances that damage unfortunately occurs where quartz repairs approach is helpful.

No matter what material is used to make laboratory glassware, the names of the several glassware types endure consistently and are based on appearance, quantity, and intended use. The following different types of laboratory glassware. Take a look:

• Flasks- Laboratory flasks are defined by their appearance with a larger base and fine open neck. Flasks are used for a variety of purposes from collecting liquids to boiling mixtures. They range in different sizes and shapes, some having two napes. Moreover, they are provided in both plastic and glass. Some of the common flasks are named as Erlenmeyer flasks, Buchner flasks, volumetric flasks, Florence, or round-bottom flasks, retort flasks, etc. 

• Beakers- Glass beakers are multi-purpose laboratory vessels designed for mixing and heating liquids. They contain a round shape with a lip spout intended for pouring. They are flat-bottomed in shape and available in various sizes from 1mm to 10 liters. However, you can find some commonly used beakers made of borosilicate glass, fused silica beakers, plastic, and stainless steel beakers.

• Bottles- Laboratory bottles are intended to contain liquids for storage. They come in an extensive variety of metals, sizes, and forms. Some are designed with a flaring mouth to hold a glass stopper and others include screw-on plastic caps. Bottles are available in clear glass or brown glass for light-sensitive liquids. They can be jar-shaped with a broad aperture, jug-shaped with a little thumb loop for safe holding or may have a rectangular base.

• Funnels- Funnels are modified cones with a high straight nape. They can be used for spill-free pouring from one vessel to another. They usually do not require to be heat resistant. 

•  Burettes- They are very long finished tube-shaped items of glassware used for precise measuring of liquids. Glass burettes are loaded from the top and clear of the bottom. 

• Test Tubes- These are round-bottomed, cylindrical glassware extensively used in laboratories to hold or process small quantities of material. Test tubes are often used to practice organisms in biology, and special racks hold these around horizontally for the best growing medium surface.

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The Different type of Glasses in the lab

When it comes to glassware, most people instantly think of the glass in our kitchens, the beautiful pieces in a department store, or those frames found in our intimate restaurant. But there is glassware of the practical kind and it can be seen preparing the work of researchers and specialists around the world that is also called lab glassware. Glass is stimulating, crisp and transparent and has a diversity of uses from eyeglasses to shutters and a complete lot in between. It can be broadly classified into four basic categories such as soda-lime glass, lead glass, quartz glass, and borosilicate glass. Essential in organic and chemical laboratories, lab glassware is traditionally made of heat-resistant glass but it is now manufactured in synthetics and synthetic coated glass. Glasses are preferred for many purposes due to its transparency, heat resistance, and chemical durability. The following are some different types of glasses used in the lab.


Lead glass- As the name indicates it has a high quantity of lead oxide in it. Lead glass is described by a comparatively soft exterior which makes it ideal for decorating idea where sharpening, cutting and burning need to be done. Lead glass is inadequate to endure high temperatures or sudden temperature fluctuations. Usually, word crystal would not be used for glass due to its structure, but the term leads crystal proceeds to remain accessible due to traditional and commercial reasons.

Borosilicate glass- Any silicate glass which has at least 5% of boric oxide in its production relates to this category. Borosilicate glass includes a greater endurance to thermal fluctuations and chemical corrosion. Due to this chemical production, borosilicate glass is quite useful in industrial chemical factories, labs, and pharmaceutical manufacturing. Some home belongings such as plates and other heat repellent things are made from borosilicate glass. Following are some major advantages of borosilicate glass:

• It can withstand high temperatures easily
• It can withstand high agitation and thermal stress
• It can insert to almost all chemicals 
• It is an extremely low coefficient of expansion 
• It has corrosion-resistant quality 

Quartz glass- This is also called silica glass which is another labware made from this material. Silica glass has less thermal expansion and high transmission strength over several spectrums, especially in the ultraviolet. This is manufactured using many different processes. Quartz glass formed by heating the element to its melting stage and rapidly cooling it is referred to as vitreous. The most common method for quartz repairs cutting a rod or tube is to ‘snap cut’. This is a manual process, usually employed when the quantities required are small.

Following are some useful features of quartz glass:

• It has high resistance power to thermal collisions even if it is injected into water directly from red heat, it would not damage.
• Its coefficient amount of thermal increase is very low.
• It has high stability to chemical substances.
• More limited dielectric condition and dielectric loss.
• High visible transmission power over different spectrums especially in the ultraviolet.

Soda-lime glass- This is the most popular type of industrial glass and estimates for as much as 90% of all glass making. Soda-lime glass is also the atomic valuable type of glass. These glasses are essentially used for windows and glass vessels like bottles and jars. Take a look at some useful properties of soda-lime glass:

• Affordable
•  Highly inert 
•  Extremely Workable 
•  Chemically stable

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